Page 29 of A Christmas Adventure

"Well, not much. Some pieces come off very easily, but there are others that are very time-consuming. The paper breaks and you have to scrape with the scraper," Violeta explains as if nothing happened.

"Well, then you come over every day until you finish it," Maite decides.

Olga glances at her sideways, flustered because Violeta has just passed behind her and subtly brushed her butt. She feels her cheeks burning and the tingling running through her whole body. She turns to Violeta and gives her amurderous look that her neighbor's daughter receives with a mischievous smile.

Olga's revenge is not long in coming, when she sits at the table, next to Violeta because Maite has occupied the chair on her other side with her purse, with the excuse that she is moving the chair to lean forward a bit, she has let a hand go and squeezed Violeta's thigh until she makes her jump. This time it is Olga who receives an intense look from her lover and has to bite her cheeks to contain her laughter. That's how they spend the whole meal, taking every opportunity to brush against each other or drop a caress.

"I'm going to the bathroom," Maite announces when they are already having dessert and Olga has gotten up to make the coffees.

Violeta gets up as soon as her mother walks out the door and presses herself against Olga's back, trapping her body against the marble. Olga, excited and eager to feel her, clings to Violeta's hands around her waist and squeezes them tightly as she sighs and throws her head back for a moment that Violeta takes advantage of to kiss her neck.

"Come on, let me go, she's going to catch us," Olga smiles because it tickled her.

"But she just left," Violeta protests in a childish tone.

Olga turns around in her arms and gives her a passionate kiss that catches Violeta so off guard that, when Olga pulls away from her, she doesn't even remember which chair she was sitting in.

"Come on, get off," Olga tells her amused, slapping her on the butt and pointing to the chair.

Violeta drops into it as she looks at her and understands at that very moment that she doesn't want to go back to Madrid. Suddenly she realizes that her life there no longer makes any sense. She has hated her job for a long time, her relationship with Marina died months ago and except for her friendship with Teresa, there is nothing there that motivates her.

Olga hears the bathroom door open at the same moment she turns to set the coffees on the table and sees Violeta's pensive and worried face.

"What's wrong?" she whispers anxiously, leaning over the table as she looks toward the door waiting for Maite to return.

"Nothing." Violeta smiles at her with a grimace, troubled, unable to change that expression because thinking about her return is giving her anxiety.

Madrid has nothing for her, except a job that no longer fulfills her with an egocentric and unbearable boss. Alquézar has her mother, it has the tranquility she has been longing for so long, and it has Olga and the Christmas adventure she has started with her.

Chapter 15

It's four in the morning when the three women, mother, daughter, and Olga, arrive at the bakery to load the delivery van with everything Violeta and Olga need to take to Huesca. Outside, the cold has left their hands numb, and only Maite seems to move with ease at such an early hour.

Violeta yawns four times in a row, which in turn infects Olga, who rubs her hands in front of one of the ovens while Maite checks her notebook for everything that needs to go out.

Olga and Violeta exchange several knowing glances. They haven't been able to greet each other the way they would have liked because Maite has come out with her daughter, but from the way they look at each other, they don't need to kiss to express the desire they feel for one another. Violeta, shivering because she can't shake off the cold from her body, approaches her mother to see if she can help with anything. Olga watches them without moving from the side of the oven, especially Violeta, with whom she couldn't talk yesterday afternoon because the three of themstayed at her house playing cards and eating all kinds of junk that will make her ass as round as a loaf of bread.

Ever since Olga noticed that restlessness in Violeta, she has been worried, fearing she has done something to make her uncomfortable or said something inappropriate. She can't get inside her head and dreads the thought that Maite's daughter may have changed her mind and no longer wants to continue exploring what they have beyond the days she has left of vacation. Olga has the feeling that the hours are flying by at a dizzying pace and that the minutes with Violeta are slipping through her fingers. Nothing seems enough, and despite the fiery desire she feels for her and that uncontrollable ardor when they are alone, she feels that every time they sleep together, they are wasting valuable time to get to know each other more deeply.

"Olga, are you listening to me?" Maite asks for the second time.

"What?"

"My goodness, I don't know what's wrong with you two, it's clear that getting up so early affects your minds," Maite laughs, looking at them both. "I said this is ready, there are a total of four bakeries you need to stop at."

"Okay, is that what needs to be loaded?" Olga points to the boxes Violeta is piling up next to the van.

"Yes, I've written the name of each bakery on the boxes so you don't mix them up, although I don't know if I can trust you to go, you're both very distracted," she says, pressing her lips together with a worried expression.

"Don't be silly, woman, I'm just not used to getting up so early and I think I need more coffee," Olga reassures her.

"I'll fix that while you finish loading, I'm going to turn on the capsule machine and you can have another one before you leave."

"Perfect," Olga thanks her.

Maite goes into a room she has set up as a small kitchen, and Olga starts picking up boxes with Violeta.

"Everything okay?" she asks, crouching down next to her.